According to First Act, each of its ‘girls’ has a distinct personality our Lola is ‘free spirited, deep and complex. Endorsees include Brent Hinds of Mastodon, Franz Ferdinand’s Nick McCarthy and Pete Koller of Sick Of It All.įirst Act’s guitars have girly names: Lola, Delia and Sheena. Pros: Looks the business, it’s a bargain.īuy: Epiphone Les Paul Junior is currently available from Thomann Next: First Act CE120 Lola Prev of 13 Next Prev of 13 Nextīasswood body North American bolt-on maple neck Indonesian rosewood fingerboard 24.75" scale Alnico V humbucker volume and tone controls chrome Tune-o-matic-style bridge and tailpiece sonic blue, racecar red or metallic black finish First Act CE120 Lola £149įirst Act offers a range of distinctive looking guitars from the affordable SFA models (produced in the Far East), to big bucks US-made axes. The Epiphone Les Paul Junior is a cracking little guitar for the money, but get this: shop around and you’ll find this guitar for as little as £79! It’s the cheapest way to bag some vintage-style, punk-approved class. Stretching the strings helped, so do the same and you should be OK. Playability is decent although we did find the tuning lacked stability. Warning: too much filth and the pickup will squeal a bit, so let’s be careful with the fuzz. The good news is that this guitar sounds pretty damn good, especially with a bit of distortion. We also find a big fat humbucker in the bridge position instead of the P90 single-coil that we expect to see on a Les Paul Junior. Instead of the mahogany body of the original Gibson guitar we get alder, and the neck is bolted on not glued-in. Our little Epiphone job is on the right side of 200 quid.Įpiphone has obviously cut some corners to bring our Les Paul Junior in at £149. Original ’50s LP Juniors like Billie’s cost a bloody fortune, but don’t despair. Green Day’s Billie Joe Armstrong has a Gibson signature model based on ‘Floyd’, his 1956 Les Paul Junior. You already knew that? Hey, we’re just making sure… Next: Epiphone Les Paul Junior Prev of 13 Next Prev of 13 NextĪlder body mahogany neck rosewood fingerboard 24.75" scale Epiphone humbucker volume and tone controls chrome combined bridge/tailpiece vintage sunburst or black finish Epiphone Les Paul Junior £149įor most of us, the affordable Epiphone range of guitars is the only way to get hold of iconic designs from Gibson such as the Les Paul Standard, Firebird, Explorer and Flying V. Pros: Satisfying playability, fat sounds.Ĭons: Weight, tuning slippage.
#Action strings kickass series
If we have one niggle with Encore’s Blaster Series guitar, it’s that - despite generally solid hardware - there was a bit of difficulty keeping the E99 in tune when you’re bending the strings a la Gary Moore. But then again they’d be crazy not to appreciate how these translate into smooth, singing sustain when you plug in, and certifiable not to agree that the overdriven growl of the Guitar Tech humbuckers is indicative of a far more expensive guitar. OK, maybe not… not everyone will like the mighty body mass and palm-filling neck profile. Working to a modest budget, he’s come up with a hard-rock guitar that looks the business, weighs a ton, has been built with decent attention to detail, and will have Jimmy Page sniffing around when he sees it.
#Action strings kickass plus
Following the format of the model it kinda resembles but with cheaper materials, you’ve got a thick basswood body and a wuton top, plus a pair of Trev’s highly respected Guitar Tech humbuckers at the neck and at the bridge.
It might be the new boy, but Encore has armed the E99 to make sure it doesn’t get bullied.
#Action strings kickass upgrade
We’ll kick-off with the cheapest… Encore Blaster Series E99 £119īritish brand Encore already rules the entry-level, but it raised its game with the Blaster Series, commissioning designer Trev Wilkinson to upgrade the spec, but not charging you for his time.
However, all definitely provide bags of fun on a surprisingly low budget. Whatever the reason, the following 13 models have been hand-picked from the pages of Total Guitar, and while they don't stand up to close scrutiny when compared to high-end Fender and Gibson types, each model offers something different. If you’re seeking an electric guitar for less than £200, you’re either a) a beginner, b) the confused parent of an aspiring Hendrix, or c) a struggling semi-pro who just sold the band’s entire rig to pay for a demo at Abbey Road and now has nothing left to record with. Basswood body, wuton top hard maple bolt-on neck Indonesian rosewood fingerboard 24.75" scale 2 x Guitar Tech humbuckers 2 x volume, 2 x tone, 3-way pickup selector Guitar Tech tune-o-matic bridge, stop tailpiece cherry sunburst or gloss black finish Encore Blaster Series E99 £119
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